#3: Spearhead From Space
Release date - November 2000
Back cover info:
"Exiled to Earth in the late 20th Century by his own people — the Time Lords — the newly regenerated Doctor arrives in Oxley Woods alongside a shower of mysterious meteorites. Investigating these unusual occurrences is the newly-formed United Nations Intelligence Taskforce — UNIT for short. Led by Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, UNIT is soon called into action when people and meteorites start going missing. Most puzzling of all is the attempted kidnap of a strange hospital patient — a man with two hearts, who insists that he recognises the Brigadier.
The new Doctor soon joins forces with his old friend, UNIT, and the recently recruited Dr Liz Shaw, but time is running out.
Irregular things are happening at a nearby plastics factory, while faceless creatures lurk in the woods. The Nestenes have arrived, and want to conquer the Earth.
This story was originally broadcast on BBC1 between 3rd - 24th January 1970." Special features:
Commentary with Nicholas Courtney (The Brigadier) and Caroline John (Liz Shaw)
On-screen Production Notes (Information text)
UNIT Recruitment Film (Dur. 4.47)
1999 Trailers: Combined Episode 1 & 2 (Dur. 0.23), Episode 3 (Dur. 023), BBC2 Doctor Who Night (0.44)
Photo gallery
A Special Edition of this story was later released as part of the 'Mannequin Mania' box set.
Release date - May 2011
Back cover info:
"Exile! The Time Lords have banished the newly regenerated Doctor to Earth
But the Doctor isn't the only alien to have arrived, as a swarm of meteorites have crashed into the sleepy English countryside, bringing with them a terrible new threat to mankind
As the Nestene plan takes shape, UNIT, the Doctor and his newly appointed scientific advisor, Liz Shaw, race against time to stop humanity being replaced by a terrifying plastic facsimile race" Special features:
• Commentary 1 - Original release commentary with Nicholas Courtney (The Brigadier) and Caroline John (Liz Shaw)
• Commentary 2 - New commentary with producer Derrick Sherwin (producer) and Terrance Dicks (script editor)
• Down to Earth (dur. 22’ 39”) – At the end of 1969, Doctor Who faced a very uncertain future. Ratings had slumped and Patrick Troughton had left the show. In a brave move, producer Derrick Sherwin re-invented the show as a fast-paced, Earth-bound colour series for the seventies. Cast and crew look back at the making of this story and how a strike at the BBC studios inadvertently created the only classic series story to be made entirely on film.
• Regenerations: From Black and White to Colour (dur. 18’ 39”) – ‘Spearhead from Space’ marked not only the arrival of a new Doctor but also the transition from black and white to colour as the show moved into a new decade. This documentary looks at the challenges faced by programme makers during this period
• UNIT Recruitment Film (dur. 4’ 48”) – a spoof army recruitment film put together for BBC transmission during Doctor Who’s 30th anniversary celebrations in 1993.
• Trailers (total dur. 1’ 40”) – two trailers for the 1999 BBC2 transmission of the story and for ‘Doctor Who Night’from the same year
• Coming Soon Trailer - Frontios (Dur 1.02)
A third release - a Blu-Ray version of the story - is also available
Release date - July 2013
Back cover info:
"As punishment for breaking the laws of time, the Time Lords have forced the Doctor to change his appearance, taken away his ability to time travel, and exiled him to Earth... But as the TARDIS arrives, so does a meteor shower carrying an alien invasion force. Originally shot on 16mm film, this classic Doctor Who story is the first to be upgraded into stunning HD" Special Features:
• A Dandy and a Clown (dur. 42’ 19”) – this exclusive documentary looks at the life and career of Jon Pertwee
• Carry On: The Life of Caroline John (dur. 29’ 07”) – a tribute to the actress who played Liz Shaw
• Title Sequence Material (dur. 22’ 38” ) – raw, mute test and build-up material produced during creation of the Jon Pertwee title sequence
• Restoration Comparison (dur. 2’ 13” ) – This feature compares the results of the Blu-Ray against previous versions and looks at some of the problems encountered during the remastering
• Coming Soon Trailer - The Green Death Special Edition (Dur. 1.25)
Finally, a limited edition steelbox (2,000 copies) of the Blu-Ray was released as a Zavvi exclusive
Release date - April 2016